title: The portable gas chromatograph OralChroma™: a method of choice to detect oral and extra-oral halitosis.
abstract: It is now generally accepted that the volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) hydrogen sulfide, methyl mercaptan and dimethyl sulfide are the main contributors to halitosis when of oropharyngeal origin. Gas chromatography using a specific sulfur detector is the most appropriate method to detect halitosis of different origin (intra-oral and extra-oral halitosis) and should be considered as the gold standard. However, a gas chromatograph is an expensive apparatus and needs trained personnel. The less specific Halimeter is the most used apparatus in halitosis research. In this study a newly developed portable gas chromatograph, the OralChroma™ (Abilit Corporation, Japan), was evaluated for use in the field of halitosis. The results show that the OralChroma is a very sensitive apparatus for measuring VSCs. Just like standard gas chromatography, it can perfectly differentiate between intra-oral and extra-oral blood-borne halitosis, while the Halimeter can only detect intra-oral halitosis. The hardware of the OralChroma meets all the needs for becoming the apparatus of choice in the field of halitosis. However, the software needs a major revision. Sometimes, the concentrations given for the different VSCs are completely incorrect due to a wrong assignment of the place of the VSCs in the chromatogram.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tangerman
authors.forename: E G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Winkel